Notes: Oooh, and I gave Daisuke's fairy tale a little more significance than I originally intended

Notes: Oooh, and I gave Daisuke's fairy tale a little more significance than I originally intended! That's what I get for trying to waste space. ^^; All the original notes about Tamachi, Tokyo, and Odaiba, as well as Miyako apply here, too. ^^

BG info on "The Tinder Box": Since I gave it a little more significance than I originally intended, here's what you need to know. A soldier climbed down into a tree to retrieve a tinder box for an old woman and some gold for himself. After the old woman refused to tell the soldier what she planned to do with the tinder box, he killed her. Later on, the soldier needs to light a candle and remembers there was a match in the tinder box. When he strikes the match, one of the dogs he encountered while in the tree came to his service (there were three dogs, all with huge eyes.) The soldier had heard about a princess who no one was allowed to see, so he asked the dog to bring the princess to him, and he did. There's more to the story, but that's all you need to know.

Disclaimer: I still don't own any of the cities, any of the characters, or anything having to do with Digimon or "The Tinder Box".

Bewitching the Dragon

Part One -- Chapter Two

By: Hanae Michiko

===============

The gaze of azure blue eyes grazed over Tamachi. The blue dragon had done more damage than the night before, and Ken's young blonde servant was beginning to worry that there was no hope. He sunk into a chair next to the window and stared with glazed eyes at the town. The town his once-master took so much pride in was now being destroyed by his very own fault. Innocents were dropping like flies, and the boy feared that when the dragon had run out of places and people to terrorize, he would turn on his own home.

Takeru sighed. They had called for help what seemed like ages ago, but it had only been three days. Two days since they received word back that someone was being sent. It was taking too long, though. By the time the hero arrived, there would be nothing left of Tamachi to save.

"Oh well. Might as well check on the refugees. No sense in worrying."

Several people had fled Tamachi in fear, running north to find a safe place to stay. Others, who had nowhere else to go, ran to Ken's palace to be saved, and Takeru and the other servants had happily given them refuge. Others still were confident enough in themselves to think they would not fall victim to the blue dragon's wrath. Others like Miyako.

Takeru scowled at the name. Everything was that evil witch's fault! The downfall of Tamachi…the fact that Ken was an angry blue dragon... And simply because Ken didn't find interest in women! If she had listened…if she had been patient enough to let Ken tell her what he had to, none of this would have happened. It was all Miyako's fault. Takeru hoped she burned at the stake for what she had done.

Forcing himself to think of happier things, Takeru made his way around to the rooms he had given out to the dragon's victims. He had a letter to write to a very special person. Takeru could barely wait until the evening when he could send it out.

* * * * *

Camping outside in the heat was not Daisuke's idea of luxurious living, so when he spotted an inn in the distance, or what he hoped was an inn, he whooped for joy. The redhead had been traveling for nearly two days, walking day and night and stopping only to sleep. He felt he deserved a break and hoped what he saw on the horizon was indeed a comfortable inn. Determined, Daisuke continued trudging down the road, and when he was close enough to see the sign hanging just above the doorway of the building, he ran.

"Thank the gods!" he shouted as he entered the inn, letting the cool air rush over him in a sudden wave, relieving him of the heat of the outdoors.

A short, sienna-haired teenager turned to Daisuke and raised one thin eyebrow above slanted, curious green eyes.

"May I help you?" he asked politely.

"Ah, yes, are you the manager?" Daisuke replied, looking around at the quaint inn with appreciation.

"Assistant manager, but my grandfather is out. Would you like a room?"

Daisuke nodded mutely before walking to the desk behind which the boy was standing.

"Yes, please."

"Single or double?"

"Single."

"How many nights?"

"Just tonight."

The boy skimmed over a packet of papers he was holding in his hands.

"Okay, we have a room for you. It'll be a moment to set it up. Would you like a drink in the meantime?"

Daisuke smiled brightly.

"Yeah!"

The teenager walked out from behind the desk and led Daisuke into the back of the inn to the pub. The place was incredibly crowded, but there was plenty of room for more. The boy took Daisuke to the bar and got behind it to serve him.

"What's your name?" the boy asked, filling a glass for Daisuke.

"Motomiya Daisuke."

"I'm Hida Iori."

"Hey, nice to meet you!"

Daisuke shook Iori's hand after he received his glass and took a drink from the glass after releasing the boy's hand.

"So, Motomiya-san--"

"Just Daisuke, please," Daisuke interrupted, taking another couple sips from his glass.

"Okay, Daisuke, if you just call me Iori."

"Deal," Daisuke agreed with a friendly wink.

"So, Daisuke, where are you from?"

Daisuke leaned forward against the bar on his elbows in a sign of exhaustion and fatigue and sighed.

"Tokyo."

Iori seemed surprised, raising his eyebrows, piercing green eyes widening almost imperceptibly.

"Really? Where are you headed?"

Another sigh, only this time more tired and exasperated, as if it exhausted Daisuke to merely think about the journey he had ahead of him.

"Tamachi."

Subconsciously, Iori bit his lip, almost as if he were nervous.

"You know there's a dragon there that's--"

Daisuke nodded and interrupted Iori again.

"I'm going there to slay it," he said matter-of-factly.

Iori merely stared at Daisuke for a moment.

"Oh…good luck, then," Iori responded hesitantly, though sincerely. He really did wish Daisuke the best of luck.

Daisuke smiled wanly.

"Thanks."

There was a pause then. Not an uncomfortable one, but not necessarily a comfortable one. It stretched on for only a moment before Iori suddenly seemed to remember something.

"Oh! While you're in Tamachi, could you do me a favor?"

Daisuke considered for a moment and figured the kid was nice enough, so he nodded.

"If you see a tall, blonde-haired, blue-eyed boy wearing a fisherman's hat…could you give him this note for me?"

Iori placed the note in Daisuke's outstretched hand, and Daisuke glanced at it before putting it in his back pocket. It had "To: Takeru From: Iori" written on it, and little hearts decorated the surface of the paper. The redhead smiled again.

"Sure."

Iori smiled back, seemingly for the first time since the two had met. The smile was wide, and fit him very well.

"Thank you."

* * * * *

Daisuke lay awake in bed, staring up at the cracked ceiling of his room. The inn was old, he conceded, but then again, Iori had implied that his grandfather was the manager, so it was probably a family-owned business being handed down from generation to generation. That made Daisuke laugh. What was the family going to do when they realized that Iori and this Takeru kid weren't going to be having any babies to whom they could hand the business down?

Shaking the thought aside, Daisuke tried to think about nothing. He hadn't gotten a decent night's sleep since the night before he was given the assignment, and that was enough to kill his performance in the fight against the dragon, but the redhead was also bogged down with worry and apprehension of the fight. He was surely going to lose. Daisuke thought about the note in the back pocket of his pants. Well, if for nothing else, he had to survive to at least give Iori's note to his Takeru. Maybe if he were lucky, he would find Takeru first, and then fight the dragon. That way he wouldn't have to worry about winning.

'Dammit!' Daisuke cursed in his head. 'I'm thinking again…this is not good for sleep!'

He again cleared his head, wishing briefly that Jun were there to read him his fairy tale. Instead, he began fabricating his perfect man in his head…or trying to, at least. He didn't seem satisfied with anything of his ideas.

'Maybe I don't have a perfect man…maybe I'm destined to be alone for the rest of my life… No! No, no, no! You're thinking again! Stop it!'

Daisuke eventually settled for the old counting sheep tactic. The animals were so boring he almost immediately fell into a deep slumber.

* * * * *

/Trees surrounded him. They were gray and black, and were twisted into such awkward shapes that he did not recognize them as trees, he simply knew they were. The forest was cold and dank, and a perpetual fog seemed to drift endlessly about the ground. He was watching something. He knew he was watching a dragon and an old woman, but neither of them had distinguishing features…he just knew that they were a dragon and an old woman. His subconscious seemed to be filling in gaps for him, telling him what things were when he would otherwise not be able to tell. So he watched the dragon and the woman amongst the trees, only knowing what they were and not seeing them as such. He watched as the dragon climbed down into a large tree, only to emerge several moments later with a bag full of something bulky and circular and a small box. The dragon talked with the old woman for a moment and then, enraged, ate her. It then moved on, not noticing it was being watched. Then, suddenly, his surroundings changed from the forest to a tower. The tower was cold and dark, and very lonely. A chill ran over his body, and he realized he was wearing only slight nightclothes. The clothing was his only indication that night had fallen, because the tower had no windows. Suddenly, a dog appeared and took hold of him. He didn't resist. He didn't think he wanted to resist, even if he could, so he let the huge dog with even larger eyes whisk him away to some small cabin. Inside the cabin was the dragon he had seen earlier. Well, the dragon he had known was a dragon earlier, as he had not actually seen it as a dragon. Before he could take in what was before him, he was reaching out, to touch the dragon, but before his fingers could reach the scaly surface, a fog of black and purple smoke surrounded the creature. An old woman stood where the dragon had been, and her face was contorted in such a way that she looked anything but human. She was angry, and in her rage, she screamed words that he could hear, yet could not hear at the same time. A fog, similar to the one that had surrounded the dragon, surrounded him, only this time it was black and red. He felt himself changing. His stomach churned sickeningly, and he felt as if he was going to vomit. Before the transformation was complete, he screamed./

* * * * *

He had traveled for one full day and then some upon leaving the inn, and was traveling in the afternoon of the fourth day of his total travel, but his dream still plagued his thoughts. He refused to believe it meant something. After all, it was merely composed of things that were on his mind at the time…his fairy tale, and the dragon. But something kept nagging him; something at the back of his mind told him the dream was important. He didn't want to believe the nagging, though. He didn't want to believe that a dream as silly as the one he'd had that night could possibly be some sort of prophecy. Dreams were nothing.

Daisuke sighed, disappointed in himself for mulling over the dream so much. It was just a dream, just an awkward compilation of things that were bothering his subconscious at the time. That was all it was. Daisuke was about to assure himself of this fact further when he realized he had been walking through a town.

"Tamachi…? Am I in Tamachi…?" the redhead asked himself, stopping and looking around to familiarize himself with the surroundings.

Judging by the wreckage and debris of destroyed buildings, he was right where he wanted to be. Or, right where he was supposed to be, rather.

"Great. Now to seek out that Takeru kid so I can give him the note," Daisuke said, continuing to talk to himself, as he reached towards his back pocket.

Suddenly he froze and felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end and his skin become covered with goose bumps. His heart began beating furiously in his chest and a cold sweat broke out on his forehead. Something pumped through his body at an almost violent pace, causing him to feel slightly dizzy and like he had more strength and energy than he actually did. Adrenaline, Daisuke realized. His heart knew something his mind did not. Daisuke swallowed, hard, finding the action proved to be much more difficult than it should have been. Something was behind him. That was what his body was telling him. Something was behind him, and it wasn't good.

Daisuke took a few slow, shaky breaths, and clenched his jaw. He forced his feet to move, and they carried him along a pivot, slowly, gently, so as not to surprise himself or whatever was behind him. Daisuke closed his eyes, not quite sure he was ready to face his inevitable doom. When he opened them again, he found himself nose to nose with a humungous blue dragon.

~End Chapter Two~